"Quickly .. I must be the first to get to them, got to kill them!" he spoke to himself, his legs darting much quicker then the rest of his comrades almost running like a rabbit. First he ran past the heavy units, slow and bulky with sets of iron that would hold them to the bottom of a lake, they could take a hit but not go at the speed he could! Next he sprinted and dodged past the medium units, they wore some leather but a lot of light robing or nothing at all, they weren't as big as the heavies but they built the mass of the group, the backbone of this driving force. "Almost .. almost there .." he wheezed. He was one of the fastest of the bunch but the cold night air seemed to take the breath out of his lungs and fill them with a burning flame. His feet padded through the snow faster then a rabbit, one by one he passed his fellow warriors until he was at the front ranks, his long skinny fingers wrapped tightly around a iron dagger, wasted away from the elements, the thin cloth around his waist blew in the wind. Once at the bridge his heart sunk so far it could of went to the belly of the earth, the enemy was waiting, shield upon shield they made a wall tighter then a dragons scales, head to toe in steel was the first rank and giant axes and bows waited in the second and third. With a snarl and a call of his folk he screamed at the enemy, but they seemed to show no fear .. they called back with war cry famous among Middle Earth, "Baruk Khazâd! Khazâd ai-mênu!"
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It is the time before battle when a warrior really calls upon their inner spirit, some do it with a drink to calm their nerves, some with taunts against the enemy while others seek peace with a higher power. It is this that makes a warrior ready for the killing, to take another life and move on. That is what the Dwarves did.
"Mahal's Hammer Shield you all my kin dwarrow! He watchs over you today, we cannot lose! We are his kin!" Kveltrild called from the very back of the company, she was the matriarch of their kin, her spirit burned brighter then all others and an attitude to match. "Duinn will have my head" Thogen grumbled, while a few around him chuckled. He had told Kveltrild that the field was no place for the Uzbad's wife and she should be safe and away in the halls of his kin but as always she resisted Thogens council. "Let us worry about Goblins taking your head before Duinn does Azaghalbad" Asudrom said while nudging his shoulder against Thogens. They had been long friends and forever in each others company either in business or battle. "A wise choice Master Asudrom" Hilfar spoke, he took the left side of Thogen, he kept saying how after this he would get back to business in the North. "How can I manage Othrikar if we don't make it out of this alive Warmaster? I have many dealings that i'm still wishing to see through you know!" he spoke, his voice was a little panicked but he tried his best to stay calm and collective, he was a merchant and not a warrior. Hroskold who took the very left of the group just counted ticks on his giant shell shield sometimes he would laugh remembering the poor soul killed that earned suck marking. The all did what they must to get ready for the fight, then the enemy charged came.
Thorlaen was barking orders, he always knew how to handle the troops, he stood in the second ranks with a large axe, he was not afraid to spill a little blood with it either. "Azaghalbad! They come closer, get your wall ready!" he shouted, already it was getting harder to hear orders, the enemy force beat shields, screamed taunts and tried to drown the enemy in fear. "Shield Wall!" Thogen ordered, the front line all raised their shields into the air and pressed shoulders tight. Once in position the shields started to overlap each other forming an almost unbreakable wall. The shield wall is very important, if the enemy cannot break it, they cannot pass. They start to trip over their own dead and chaos breaks but only if the shield wall holds. If the wall breaks then death comes through the gap and kills all around. "Dwarves .. we do not die here. We will stand to see the morning! By my beard when they are through we will feast!" Thogen called out to the company of Dwarves, everyone was moving their feet, it was hard not to with the nerves and adrenalin pulsing into the body. The enemy was close .. you could smell them, you heard the words about ugly beards and every way they would cut the beards off but still the company of Durin's Folk did not lose heart, "Sigin-Tarag!" Hroskold shouted, everyone repeated. The lighter, faster goblins came first they stood feet away from the bridge and waited to strike. Thogen beat his axe of his shield a single time before shouting to the group, welcoming a challenge "Baruk Khazâd! Khazâd ai-mênu!" and then the fight started.
"Incoming! Arrows!" Hroskold screamed to the group, dozens upon dozens of arrows filled the night sky after a snapping sound of bow strikes cracked. With haste the none shielded dwarves ran for cover under the shield wall. Arrows snapped and bounced off the stone bridge, a few landed in some Dwarven packs but none injured a single Dwarf. "Let us show them what we dwarves can do!" Thorlaen shouted and the shield wall lowered, between the heads of the front ranks crossbows took and and a half dozen bolts fired like lighting towards the enemy line, a lone goblin out in front curled clawed at the ground after being struck. "Sigin-Tarag!" the Dwarves cheered. The first blood had been split that night and that was when they attacked, the lighter goblins charged the wall like a rushing wave of water freed from a broken damn.
THUD! They hit, and through they came to break the line of steel they did nothing more then tumble to the ground. The rushing goblins from behind the first charge found themselves tripping over those who fell, already chaos came across the bridge, bodies falling upon bodies and muffled screams came from under piles of bone and skin. "Kill!" Thogen ordered and in a single motion axe, blades, hammers and mattocks came from over the shields and struck the fallen below. The second rank of dwarves swung over and under the shields killing those who tried to jump over or those that tried to crawl under the Dwarven shield wall. Dhordur was a mighty Dwarf, his great axe and taken the lives of many and tonight was no exception, swing after swing heads split and rolled from his mighty weapon, he hit with perfection and Azadrud used his nimble weapon to cut down many quickly. Again another rush of goblins pushed through the ranks and tumbled upon crafted shields and again more goblins met their fate. It seemed to be a massacre.
"Forward! Push up!" Thogen raised his voice and ordered. With a grunt the front rank of Dwarves tucked themselves under their shields and pushed a shield into the steel. the enemy had no place to go but backwards, the Dwarves started to climb over the dead. Ever so often they would raise their axes up and over the shields and strike down on heads and shoulders of the enemy and adding another body to the floor. Thogen and Asudrom kept tight together, they had done this more then once while Hilfar trailed a little behind. Hroskold was pushing back a rather fat goblin, it grumbled and groaned in resistance until an axe from Thorlaen spit its noggin in two. "Thanks broth-" Hroskold was to say until a spear was hurled from the goblins and found a gap in the wall. The crude piece lodged into his shoulder guard and weighed him down causing the wall to break a bit. "Fill the gap! Fill the gap! We can't break yet!" Thogen roared, he had seen the spear strike Hroskold, he watched while daggers tried to cut over and under his shield. Brave Thorlaen ran to take place, no shield was needed for the proud officer to hold the enemy. With darting speed his axe swirled and the end of it bashed faces, prodded necks and the axe hacked and chopped up the enemy. The wall was moving forward and so was the rest of the company though Hroskolds wrestled to remove the spear from his armour. "Not gonna get me today Goblin scum!" he protested. The fight continued in Durin's Folks favor.
A horn blew from the back of the goblin army, it sent a wave of larger goblins into the trashing battle that took place on the bridge. With blunt clubs and spiked maces they charged, the fresh enemy met the wall with much greater force moving the line of shields back a foot. "Warmaster!" Hilfar cried out but it was so hard to hear, goblins were dying, dwarves were letting out battle cries and madness surrounded it all. Sweat started to drip from their brows, the fighting was hard in they were in battle gear, battle gear was no easy walk in the valley, it left you with little motion and seemed to keep heat in like a furnace. Daingorf, young and full of like jumped at the goblins any chance he took, a strike here .. a strike there and with every goblin he fell his head grew larger with confidence. Kveltrild was still well behind it all, she held runes tight in her hand and mumbled words like she was in deep conversation with the maker himself. The sound of battle traveled far and fast. The whole Vale would have known what took place here, horns blew, ordered yelled and the stink of death filled the air. "Warmaster!" Hilfar shouted again, still Thogen heard nothing, he continued to give morale to his troops. "Our fathers and their fathers and their fathers fought harder then this! Do not let down your kin! The bards will sing of this day! Kill! Kill!" he cheered.
Dwarves are a dying race, they slowly creep to the lands of extinction and battles like this was no place for jokes and laughter. A single lose hurt their folk. They did not have cheer or sing and call poems like men in the East, They could not live forever like the race of Elves nor did they live in such humble homes like hobbits. They live in halls plagued by goblin threat and a threat so large that their people may not live in the coming years if battles were not held. And that is why they fought. Again Thogen cheered "Come here Goblins, meet our axes, they are named after the skulls we cleave! Skulls like yours!" he laughed, Thogen had a love for battle. He was one of the few Dwarves who did, it could be why this made in a capable leader but he had the skill to match it. "Warmaster!" Hilfar shouted a third time and this time Thogen heard it, Hilfar pointed with an axe towards the Goblin army, in the rear ranks stood an Orc, he was much taller then the rest. His body covered with Dwarven steel, crafted by the shameful Dourhands. He sounded a horn again and the heavies made it to the bridge. With a roar they pushed and Dwarves shifted. The wall broke.
Hroskold still sat at the back of the company with Kveltrild and Azadrud. "Get that spear out and help us!" Azadrud called, he wore light clothes and a small round shield but he was just as fierce as the next. Goblins had poured through the broken shield wall like little streams of water and now charged towards Noglond. Azadrud used his weapon to hack and slash the oncoming foes bringing one after another down while Daingorf joined in. Together the two of them took on wave after wave of rushing goblins and like a spinning whirlwind of axes the struck down the foes, Azadrud would swing high and hack the shoulder while Daingorf would swing low and nearly take a knee off. Thorlaen still held the front and soon Dhordur moved up but the two of them faced a very large goblin, it wore rusted steel and waved two blades from side to side. "He's mine .." Thorlaen said, his axe pushing away Dhordurs. The goblin came first trying to strike Thorlaens head but the nimble Dwarf swatted the blade down and sent a round shafted end to the goblins ugly mouth send teeth into the air. "Smile now!" he smirked. The goblin was filled with rage and launched towards Thorlaen, there was little he could do against such an attack except raise his axe up and bring it down hoping for the best., Blood trickled down the head of the goblin as the axe drove deep, but the goblin did not stop moving, its body carried and soon both Thorlaen and the dead goblin fell to the pile of corpses. "Thorlaen!" Dhordur shouted, he tried to save his fallen Zabad but with Thorlaen not there to hold the driving force back four goblins came to charge him.
Asudrom and Thogen still fought side by side, they held the front of the battle but now found themselves completely over run, Asudrom, the warrior he is felt no need for a shield anymore and lost his axe. Without hesitation he reached for a blade he always kept handy, it was Elvish make and said to cut even the toughest of skin, he move the blade like it was art and cut down foe after foe but not to say without taking a beating himself. Goblins climbed up and over his solid frame and ran past to try to reach the Siege camp. Hilfar had not move for some time, he only fought the enemy that came to him and dispatched them as fast as he could. He was a merchant .. not a warrior, he was not meant to be in this blood bath. Goblins pilled after him, clinging to his shield, his shoulders, his back and axe. He could hardly lift an arm. Being so unable to move he panicked and shouted. "Get them off! Get them off!" he screamed. With great struggle he started to retreat, the goblins swarmed the bridge now like a plague of insects. "Hilfar! I'm coming! Dhordur shouted and threw a knife he found on the ground into a goblins chest. Hilfar still panicked and inches before Dhordur reached him the weight became to great and he fell, bodies of wounded and dead covered him like a tomb. "Noooo!" Dhordur shouted but again he was overcome with new foes.
Thogen stood covered in blood, he was knee deep in enemy bodies, he was happy. Thogen drove his shield into the goblin heads, hacked limbs off with his mighty axe and danced the dance of war, listening to the sweet music of the beating drums. Goblins would come to meet him and time after time again they would fall. It wasn't until he turned to catch sight of his thinning comrades that he snapped out of it. "Thogen!!" Asudrom shouted "We need to fall back! Regroup!". What he said was true, the line was two thin and now two of his folk were either dead or missing and he could not tell. Step after step the bodies under him crunched but he made back to his position. Thogen, Asudrom, Dhordur, everyone felt tired. The moon had taken its leave and now the morning sun started to rise. They had been fighting for a good long time and still the battle waged on. Another horn blew and a surge of goblins pushed the bridge again, wounds started to take their toll. The axes slowed, shields sat lower, skin was turning pale from blood loss. They started to get pushed back.
A howl came from near the back of the Dwarven ranks and Daingorf vanished in a charge of goblins. Azadrud looked to Hroskold and begged for aid "Hurry brother .. we cannot hold them, we need you!". He raised his axe and pushed back a goblin with his shield. Azadrud was holding well enough on his own but a large goblin pushed through, he beat a club off his open hand and grinned a yellow tooth smile. "Hroskold .." Azadrud said with worry, he really needed some assistance. Hroskold tugged and pulled until finally the spear came free. With a cheer he grabbed the nasty rusted weapon and launched the weapon with all his furry into the large goblins chest piercing it from front to back, the creature toppled over onto four smaller goblins. "Haha! About time I got in the mix!" he cheered once more, Kveltrild then screamed in terror "Arrows!". Hroskold had no time to protect himself with a hand raised and his own body as a shield he protected Kveltrild, steel broke. Three arrows lodge in the warrior, he moaned in pain. "Get back .. " Hroskold cried to Kveltrild, he dropped his shield and used his hand to snap the arrow shafts free leaving the heads to poison his body, but he could move at least. One goblin after another came for him, he took his axe and slashed them away until he could raise his axe no more, an elbow came from a charging goblin and struck him in the nose.
Hroskold fell.
